Delta Spirit
Delta Spirit is a band from San Diego, California, United States, beginning… Read Full Bio ↴Delta Spirit is a band from San Diego, California, United States, beginning in 2005. This band is most known for their intense live performances, their congregational song-writing, and their driving rhythm. The group consists of Jon Jameson (bass), Brandon Young (percussion), Matthew Vasquez (vocals/guitars), Kelly Winrich (multi-instrumentals) and Will McLaren (guitar).
"The raw spirit of indie rock. An amplified, rocking version of ’60s protest folk. The soulful passion of the Violent Femmes and The Waterboys." All of these comparisons have been made in attempts to describe Delta Spirit, the southern California five-piece who might just be one of the most important new bands of the decade. Each description contains elements of the truth, but the real answer to the question “who is Delta Spirit?” lies within Ode to Sunshine, the band’s captivating debut. The group’s DIY ethic shines throughout the album, with songs honed razor-sharp over a year of non-stop touring across America. Opening sold-out tours for Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Cold War Kids, and Dr. Dog, the band developed a riveting live show and gained a loyal following amongst tastemaker music fans, earning them invites to national festivals like Austin City Limits, Noise Pop and Sasquatch. So it would not be an understatement to call Ode to Sunshine one of the year’s most highly-anticipated debuts. But don’t take our word for it; in the words of Delta Spirit: “If you’re feeling what I’m feeling come on, all you soul searching people come on.”
Jonathan Jameson of Delta Spirit took a few minutes out of the band’s busy touring schedule to answer a few questions about the band, their music, and Ode to Sunshine.
Where in California did the band come together? How did you meet?
We are all from Southern California. Brandon met Matt while he was singing and playing guitar by the train tracks in San Diego. The rest is boring.
Who plays what and sings? Do you trade off instruments on different songs?
Brandon plays drums and percussion. Sean plays guitar, does some percussion and hits a big drum. Jon exclusively plays bass with the occasional vocal. Kelly plays piano, hits a drum, sings, hits a trashcan, plays guitar and a high strung guitar. Matt plays guitar, sings and plays piano.
Your songs are credited to the band as a whole. Could you describe how they come together? Are the lyrics collaborative as well?
It’s always a new experience. Matt and Kelly write the lyrics with minor editing done by the band. Songs come as jams, ideas, almost complete chords, hummed notes, drum beats, etc.
Some of the songs have very infectious sing along melodies (like the ba ba ba’s in “People C’mon”). Do you envision your music as communal, for audiences to participate in as well as listen to?
Our music feels most at home when we play it with people as opposed to at people. There is a mystery to music played live. It brings us out of ourselves into something bigger, something beyond our individuality. Sometimes it happens, other times the songs are just songs.
You recorded Ode to Sunshine at a cabin in Julian, California, out in the desert east of San Diego. Did the isolation of the setting influence the vibe of the album (like say, Dylan and The Band’s Basement Tapes)?
It feels like sun, saunas, dogs, friends, Old Crow and Coke, Eli Thompson, beards, hot days, long star filled nights, good books, hikes, shorts, bbq and just the way we wanted to make our first record.
Your music has been compared to current indie rockers, ’80s punk roots bands, and sixties folk rockers. Was there any music you listened to growing up, or that you listen to now, that you hear seeping into your current sound?
We were born in the ’80s, grew up in the ’90s and have parents from the ’60s. We are proud of the bands that are making great music now. Maybe it’s like the Waterboys covering Harry Nilsson or maybe a song by the Weavers at a rally, but on tour next month with Richard Swift. We want to be found in the lineage of honest and true music that has found its way through every current of music history.
There seems to be a conscience in the music, a sense of taking responsibility for ourselves, each other, and the world. What do you feel is special about this moment in history, and this generation, and the place of music and art in society? Are you encouraged by the energy you feel coming back to you from your audiences?
There is a feeling of possibility in our age. We feel that same possibility with our band. There is a deep connection there. We don’t want to forget about the most important thing for us, which is simply making good music, but that does include being aware of what’s going on in the world as well as what’s going on in our own heads and souls. We aren’t self-aggrandizing cock rockers or activist idealist hippies. We just want to be honest about ourselves and how we see the world, not minimizing the darkness or the hope, because both are very real.
Your original DIY version of Ode to Sunshine featured austere black & white artwork, while the new cover is much warmer, with the smiling face of Dr. Thomas Payne (an uncle of one of the band members) raising a toast while at a scientific convention on bark beetles. The Rounder release also features an additional song, “Streetwalker,” which despite its somber subject features a Phil Spector / Brian Wilson groove. Do the new artwork and song show a new side to the band?
I think that before when we were looking at the album it felt kinda heavy to us and serious. About the big things in life. Like a dusty record of Kennedy speeches. But I think we realized that the true feeling of the album also included what we were feeling while making it and recording it and that those bits of summer and excitement and wonder break through every once in a while. It’s as if after listening to those sobering speeches we found the pics of the Kennedys on vacation and now it all really made sense. The light and the dark. Sometimes you have to laugh at the serious stuff to be able to do something about it.
From the opening Rubber Soul-esque acoustic guitars of “Tomorrow Goes Away” to the saloon piano-over-grunge chords of “Trashcan,” from the harmonica-driven protest waltz “People, Turn Around” to the insistent surf rock drums of “Children,” Ode to Sunshine perfectly captures the energy and hope of a new generation that’s rising like a phoenix to change the world. And with Delta Spirit providing the soundtrack, this is one revolution you can dance to.
"The raw spirit of indie rock. An amplified, rocking version of ’60s protest folk. The soulful passion of the Violent Femmes and The Waterboys." All of these comparisons have been made in attempts to describe Delta Spirit, the southern California five-piece who might just be one of the most important new bands of the decade. Each description contains elements of the truth, but the real answer to the question “who is Delta Spirit?” lies within Ode to Sunshine, the band’s captivating debut. The group’s DIY ethic shines throughout the album, with songs honed razor-sharp over a year of non-stop touring across America. Opening sold-out tours for Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Cold War Kids, and Dr. Dog, the band developed a riveting live show and gained a loyal following amongst tastemaker music fans, earning them invites to national festivals like Austin City Limits, Noise Pop and Sasquatch. So it would not be an understatement to call Ode to Sunshine one of the year’s most highly-anticipated debuts. But don’t take our word for it; in the words of Delta Spirit: “If you’re feeling what I’m feeling come on, all you soul searching people come on.”
Jonathan Jameson of Delta Spirit took a few minutes out of the band’s busy touring schedule to answer a few questions about the band, their music, and Ode to Sunshine.
Where in California did the band come together? How did you meet?
We are all from Southern California. Brandon met Matt while he was singing and playing guitar by the train tracks in San Diego. The rest is boring.
Who plays what and sings? Do you trade off instruments on different songs?
Brandon plays drums and percussion. Sean plays guitar, does some percussion and hits a big drum. Jon exclusively plays bass with the occasional vocal. Kelly plays piano, hits a drum, sings, hits a trashcan, plays guitar and a high strung guitar. Matt plays guitar, sings and plays piano.
Your songs are credited to the band as a whole. Could you describe how they come together? Are the lyrics collaborative as well?
It’s always a new experience. Matt and Kelly write the lyrics with minor editing done by the band. Songs come as jams, ideas, almost complete chords, hummed notes, drum beats, etc.
Some of the songs have very infectious sing along melodies (like the ba ba ba’s in “People C’mon”). Do you envision your music as communal, for audiences to participate in as well as listen to?
Our music feels most at home when we play it with people as opposed to at people. There is a mystery to music played live. It brings us out of ourselves into something bigger, something beyond our individuality. Sometimes it happens, other times the songs are just songs.
You recorded Ode to Sunshine at a cabin in Julian, California, out in the desert east of San Diego. Did the isolation of the setting influence the vibe of the album (like say, Dylan and The Band’s Basement Tapes)?
It feels like sun, saunas, dogs, friends, Old Crow and Coke, Eli Thompson, beards, hot days, long star filled nights, good books, hikes, shorts, bbq and just the way we wanted to make our first record.
Your music has been compared to current indie rockers, ’80s punk roots bands, and sixties folk rockers. Was there any music you listened to growing up, or that you listen to now, that you hear seeping into your current sound?
We were born in the ’80s, grew up in the ’90s and have parents from the ’60s. We are proud of the bands that are making great music now. Maybe it’s like the Waterboys covering Harry Nilsson or maybe a song by the Weavers at a rally, but on tour next month with Richard Swift. We want to be found in the lineage of honest and true music that has found its way through every current of music history.
There seems to be a conscience in the music, a sense of taking responsibility for ourselves, each other, and the world. What do you feel is special about this moment in history, and this generation, and the place of music and art in society? Are you encouraged by the energy you feel coming back to you from your audiences?
There is a feeling of possibility in our age. We feel that same possibility with our band. There is a deep connection there. We don’t want to forget about the most important thing for us, which is simply making good music, but that does include being aware of what’s going on in the world as well as what’s going on in our own heads and souls. We aren’t self-aggrandizing cock rockers or activist idealist hippies. We just want to be honest about ourselves and how we see the world, not minimizing the darkness or the hope, because both are very real.
Your original DIY version of Ode to Sunshine featured austere black & white artwork, while the new cover is much warmer, with the smiling face of Dr. Thomas Payne (an uncle of one of the band members) raising a toast while at a scientific convention on bark beetles. The Rounder release also features an additional song, “Streetwalker,” which despite its somber subject features a Phil Spector / Brian Wilson groove. Do the new artwork and song show a new side to the band?
I think that before when we were looking at the album it felt kinda heavy to us and serious. About the big things in life. Like a dusty record of Kennedy speeches. But I think we realized that the true feeling of the album also included what we were feeling while making it and recording it and that those bits of summer and excitement and wonder break through every once in a while. It’s as if after listening to those sobering speeches we found the pics of the Kennedys on vacation and now it all really made sense. The light and the dark. Sometimes you have to laugh at the serious stuff to be able to do something about it.
From the opening Rubber Soul-esque acoustic guitars of “Tomorrow Goes Away” to the saloon piano-over-grunge chords of “Trashcan,” from the harmonica-driven protest waltz “People, Turn Around” to the insistent surf rock drums of “Children,” Ode to Sunshine perfectly captures the energy and hope of a new generation that’s rising like a phoenix to change the world. And with Delta Spirit providing the soundtrack, this is one revolution you can dance to.
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Delta Spirit Lyrics
9/11 Say good morning to my friends Oh, my Lord, it's 6am The…
911 Say good morning to my friends Oh, my Lord, it's 6am The…
Ballad Of Vitaly In the German sky there once was a plane It carried…
Better Now You have a gift of signs Interlock your hand in mine You…
Bleeding Bells There's no place to lay my dead When I can't stay…
Bushwick Blues Hold on to my hand Never let go, never let go We…
California I want you to move to California for yourself I want…
Can You Ever Forgive Me Can you ever forgive me? For not being there when you…
Children Children shut your eyes We'll tell you what to see This worl…
Crippler King Well a young Tom Gerald was found at the scene, with a…
Devil Knows You're Dead May the wind be always at your back And the sun…
Empty House Glinting gems in the concrete I paved One every couple of…
For My Enemy As we all marched ahead In the early hours it began Letter…
French Quarter French Quarter, quarter to four Town is empty like a nuclear…
From Now On Down in Reseda where I left my keys You picked them…
Gimme Some Motivation Are you a believer? You told me that you loved me…
Golden State These roads stretch a thousand miles in every way I look…
Hold My End Up The sun fell, another night began Shots rang out, all the…
Home Be like a rug, hashed out in club And it's all…
Home Again How good it feels to be home again Struck by the…
House Built For Two The years have been turning on You left me at home To…
How Bout It The war on magic got the behind the blindly enlisted They…
Idaho Thunderclouds have been making face My friends are on the fr…
Into The Darkness So whats the part that you're playing Should I have guessed…
Into The Wide At the end of the last road in town At the…
It Ain't Easy Could you feel me meltin' in your hand? The last time…
Just the Same And I think back to the night we met We weren't…
Language Of The Dead Take this lightning off of me Too wonderful for me to…
Live On When miguel hit the ground I threw the padlock in the…
Lover's Heart Oh my lover's heart is like a fortress And when the…
Making Sense You joined the gang And you're down for the cause You want…
Money Saves Spanning this trap I’m in Live in indecision but haven’t an…
Ode To Sunshine When your working is done And you have nothing left to…
Otherside It's in my head It's a relief The sweet sound that I…
Parade Living like they never thought they ever could Paupers beggi…
Patriarch As the chill finally hit your skin Your accomplice turned yo…
People I'm a wandering soul I got no place of my own Well,…
People Turn Around Eighteen and jaded with guns in their hands They were fighti…
People Turn Around ! Eighteen and jaded with guns in their hands They were fight…
People Turn Around! Eighteen and jaded with guns in their hands They were fighti…
Pick It Up Just tear it up Just tear it up Just tear it up Just…
Push It The kindness of man decayed The forces of darkness played Th…
Ransom Man With a blindfold I can walk I see colors when you…
Running Hold the light my love Hold the light my love Could you…
Salt In The Wound I want to disappear Far from the folks I know I want…
Scarecrow Oh, scarecrow You know why I'm asleep? All the weight you …
Some Dreams Found myself in a cage Holding onto my anger Somewhere there…
St. Francis (Verse) They're all throwing stones at the back of my home …
Strange Vine It's such a strange vine Wrapped around my neck All twisted …
Street Walker Streetwalker knows how to strut right She knows the truth …
Streetwalker Streetwalker knows how to strut right She knows the truth Ba…
Take Shelter Take shelter, take cover The lightning and thunder When the …
Tear It Up Just tear it up Just tear it up Just tear it up Just…
Tellin' The Mind It took the final straw that broke across my back And…
The Pressure You got the vibe but you can't let it out You're…
The Wreck Too much talk bout myself Drags me straight down to hell F…
Time Bomb Tickin' of a time bomb I just wanna stop the sound Faded…
Tomorrow Goes Away Every time I see you it gets a little worse Perhaps…
Trashcan Brothers hold the line till we got something This world is…
Vivian Sleep oh sleep my Vivian Heaven is too cold without you Well…
War Machine War machine you can't break me You can't have the world…
What Is There Bound to an oath Riding out a debt Always coming sideways Ne…
When in Roam Gold mouth, street grammar My big dick in these petite stand…
White Table Meet me darlin', won't you? I've been waiting for you At my…
Yamaha So cold, I know you can't believe it Sometimes you gotta…
You're Mine You're still working out the penance But was it ever really…